It is not the first time Wigan have upset the odds to beat Man City in the FA Cup.

The Latics defeated them in the final five years ago to win the trophy despite also getting relegated from the Premier League in the same season.

“In the build-up the gaffer was really positive,” said Elder, who is on loan from Leicester until the end of the season. “He said if we don't go out and believe we can win the game there is no point fielding a team.

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“The 2013 final was brought up. It is one of the most important fixtures in Wigan's history so it was in our minds. Ahead of kick-off we truly believed we could get something.

“As a defender it was without doubt the most tactically difficult match I have been involved in. It is so hard to stick to one idea because their movement is unbelievable. They have players in all positions moving to all parts of the pitch.

“The main tactic we set out was to get them into wide areas, because we knew their strength was through the middle of the pitch. They wanted to take us to the wings then bring us back centrally to try to hurt us when we were open. So for as long as we could we tried to stay as compact as possible, but it is easier said than done.

“You could say Fabian Delph's red card was a turning point. At first we thought he was going to get a yellow card but I think that was just the referee taking his name down. Then he showed the red.

“At half-time the manager said, 'Stay calm, just because they have got ten men don't feel we have to go and try to get the win early.' We stayed in our shape. We knew we'd have to defend our box quite deep at times but that there would be moments when we could score.”